Closed doors Tuesday separated the Archuleta County
commissioners from the people who elected them. Events transpiring
behind those closed doors may close doors between the commissioners
and four elected county officials.

At issue is the perception by the four elected officials that
County Manager Dennis Hunt is granting larger raises to people in his
department than are being allowed in other departments. Although the
commissioners are responsible for adopting the budget, Hunt, along
with finance officer Tracy Allen, is charged with preparing the
budget for the entire county.

Each of the four elected officials say their departments are
not being treated fairly when it comes to employee raises.

"Why are we left out in the cold?," asked County Clerk June
Madrid. "We are given a memo telling us to limit our employee raises
to 2.9 percent in accordance with the cost of living. Then we see
Dennis giving his people raises anywhere from 5 to 20 percent. They
tell me what happens in other departments isn't my business. Then one
of my people quits and goes to work for the sheriff for $5,000 a year
more than I can pay. Another employee quit and went to work for Taco
Bell."

"I have needed another employee for three years, but haven't
received one," said County Treasurer Traves Garrett. "The three
people I have work really hard and we have got the job done. I
consider all of them as key people. So it doesn't set well with me
when I see people in another department getting larger raises than my
people. The county manager is not the only one with key people. My
people are key people, too, and they've been here a lot longer. What
I want is equity among the departments."

"My concern is that everyone be treated equally," said Sheriff
Tom Richards. "If Hunt wants to give those people those kinds of
raises, I think what is good for one department should be good for
all departments."

"I feel when the elected commissioners allow one of their
employees to determine what the employees of other elected officials
get they are giving that person too much power," said County Assessor
Keren Prior. "What I want is parity, fairness. It's hard for someone
with an interest in his own department to not be biased. He only sees
what concerns him. He sits in judgment on us and he doesn't know our
people or the work we do. I cannot believe he is unbiased," Prior
said of the county manager.

Prior suggests that elected officials have a say about the
budget. Even though, at the beginning of the budget process each
department head, including elected officials, submits budget requests
to the county manager, and even though subsequent meetings are held
between the commissioners and department heads, Prior feels all of
the meetings amount to nothing because "what we say doesn't make any
difference."

"It's time for the taxpayers to get involved, to find out what
their county government is doing," Prior said.

Tuesday at the end of the commissioners' regular meeting, the
agenda listed: executive session with Keren Prior - personnel
matters; executive session with June Madrid - personnel matters;
executive session with Traves Garrett - personnel matters; and
executive session with Tom Richards - personnel matters. All are
elected to office by the voters of the county, just as the
commissioners are elected.

When asked why they scheduled "underground sessions,"
Commissioner Ken Fox, chairman of the board of commissioners replied,
"They are not underground sessions. Executive session has been called
to discuss performance and salary evaluations."

When asked who requested that the meetings be private, Fox
said, "The county commissioners." None of the other four elected
officials asked for an executive session even though they hire and
supervise the people involved.

Fox did not volunteer, nor was he asked, if the decision was
made by agreement of all of the commissioners. Fox was not available
for comment Wednesday because he and Hunt were attending county
business in Denver.

"The first time we see the agenda is Friday afternoon prior to
the Tuesday meeting," said Commissioner Gene Crabtree. "Typically
items on the agenda are placed there by Ken (Fox) because he is
chairman of the board of commissioners or by Dennis Hunt."

Public hearings concerning the budget are scheduled for next
Monday and Tuesday, according to Crabtree. In addition, Crabtree said
the commissioners traditionally make final budget adjustments while
attending a Colorado Counties Inc. statewide meeting in Colorado
Springs in late November or early December.

Whereas "social gatherings and chance meetings" are exempt from
open meeting regulations if discussion of public business is not the
central purpose, all meetings of a quorum of public officials at
which public business is discussed or formal action "might be taken"
are to be open to the public. Also, local public bodies "must keep
minutes of meetings where formal action does or could occur."

Concerning last Tuesday's meeting, Madrid said, "I was
surprised when I saw that they were holding an executive session for
personnel reasons because I don't believe they have any right to
conduct a meeting like that concerning my personnel. They are my
people, they work for me, the commissioners don't know them, and they
have no right to tell them what to do."

The commissioners are responsible for adopting the county
budget, including the budgets used by other elected officials.

"They have the right to adopt the budget, but they don't have
the right to tell me how much to pay my people," Madrid said. "Ken
said they have the right to set salaries, how much we should pay each
person. He said the commissioners wanted an executive session so each
of us could talk to them one-on-one without being interrupted. I do
not believe they have a right to set individual salaries in other
departments."

All of the elected officials admitted that salaries was the
basic topic discussed during the executive session with the
commissioners.

The Colorado open meetings law allows executive sessions closed
to the public for certain, but not all, personnel reasons. Salaries,
raises and performance evaluations would not normally be a valid
reason for an executive session.

In addition, the law requires an agenda heading concerning
personnel issues to say something more specific than "personnel."

The intent of the open meeting law is contained in a
legislative policy statement which says: "It is declared to be a
matter of statewide concern and the policy of this state that the
formation of public policy is public business and may not be
conducted in secret."

Enforcement of open meeting laws relies on the willingness of
concerned citizens to challenge public bodies they think are
violating the law. Such response could include initiating court
action against the offending public body.

Second traffic signal close to
'sure bet'

By Karl Isberg

For years, local residents have used Archuleta County's only
stoplight as a landmark when giving directions.

The stoplight controls traffic at the intersection of U.S. 160
(Pagosa Street) and Hot Springs Boulevard in downtown Pagosa
Springs.

With project bids looming in the near future, construction of a
traffic signal at the intersection of U.S. 160 and Lewis Street is
set to begin next spring. When the work is done and the light is in
place, giving directions will be more complex.

If a traffic signal planned for the intersection of U.S. 160
and Piedra Road is put in place, the days of "go to the traffic light
and take a left," will be gone forever.

Pagosa Springs Town Administrator Jay Harrington said Wednesday
that a project to reconstruct the current intersection of U.S. 160,
Lewis Street and 5th Street is as close to a sure bet as you can
get.

"We've had to modify parts of the plan after we received
feedback from the Colorado Department of Transportation," said
Harrington, "but we expect it to go to bid soon. If we receive an
appropriate bid back, our goal is to have construction begin next
spring."

That construction will involve a slight re-route of 5th Street,
to eradicate what is now a three-way intersection and move traffic on
5th Street on to Lewis Street before it reaches the intersection.
With the re-route of 5th Street, only Lewis Street will join U.S. 160
and that intersection will be controlled by a stop light.

The town of Pagosa Springs has budgeted $180,000 for the
downtown intersection project and CDOT has committed $90,000 to the
job.

A project to alter the intersection of U.S. 160 and Piedra Road
is more complex, and problems remain to be solved.

Following a meeting on Nov. 8 with CDOT officials, Harrington
said he detailed a number of issues town and county officials have
concerning proposed CDOT reconstruction and signalization of the
intersection of U.S. 160 and Piedra Road.

The intersection was changed several years ago by CDOT, to
include a right-turn-only lane for westbound highway traffic turning
on to Piedra Road, as well as a turn lane on Piedra Road, an access
lane for traffic leaving Piedra Road to the westbound lane of the
highway and a turn lane for vehicles accessing Piedra Road from the
eastbound lane of the highway.

According to most resident drivers, despite the changes, the
intersection remains one of the most dangerous in the county. With
proposed development on the northeast corner of the intersection,
traffic flow is expected to increase.

The current CDOT plan for the intersection includes a traffic
light and an elevated island delineating the right-turn-only lane for
westbound traffic leaving the highway.

The improvement is long overdue, said Harrington, but planning
must be more farsighted.

"In general," said Harrington, "we are concerned about the
proper design of the intersection. CDOT has committed to construct
and signalize the intersection next summer. Local officials have
concerns about some design issues. One of our basic concerns is that
widening the U.S. 160 corridor to four lanes from 8th Street in
downtown Pagosa Springs west to North Pagosa Boulevard is the
number-one priority for the Southwest Transportation Planning
Commission and the number-three priority in the entire Region 9
20-year plan. But the corridor project hasn't been plugged into the
funding plan and probably won't be funded for five to 10 years. The
problem, as we see it, is the design of the intersection does not
acknowledge the potential expansion of the corridor to four lanes.
There has been no planning to incorporate this possibility. Also, we
don't think CDOT has considered the proposed rerouting and
construction of Eagle Drive (the access road on the north side of the
highway that feeds traffic to the intersection). The town and county
will do the work on Eagle Drive while the state works on the
intersection. The projects must be coordinated.

"At our meeting on Monday we tried to get CDOT, town and county
staff together to make sure we all get a grip on the issues before
this project goes to bid," said Harrington. "I think all the issues
can be easily resolved if we get everyone together. Fortunately, CDOT
made a commitment to the town and county to do so, and the bottom
line is we all need to be on the same page."

State lays down law for school
district

By Roy Starling

During a discussion of Colorado's new state accreditation
requirements Tuesday night, the School District 50 Joint board of
directors seemed to agree on one point: It's the state's way or the
highway.

Commenting on an accreditation system that relies almost
entirely on the results of Colorado Student Assessment Program tests,
Superintendent Terry Alley said the state was "definitely taking away
local control. And I'm not sure what their rationale is."

Alley said there was a lot of "unhappiness" with the
requirements "mainly due to the heavy emphasis on CSAP scores."

"Apparently they're more interested in how we're doing as
opposed to what we're doing," said school board president Randall
Davis. "They're really pushing teachers more and more to teach to the
test."

Colorado students between third and 10th grade will ultimately
be taking a total of 11 CSAP tests (in reading, writing, science and
math), and the state will average the results of all 11 to chart
students' progress towards mastering state standards. "That average
will have to show a 25 percent increase over a three-year period,"
Alley said, "or the district will have to get 80 percent of its
students at the proficient or above level."

Failure to meet either of those requirements would land a
district on "academic watch," which could then lead to "academic
probation" within a year. Continued "poor" test results would result
in the loss of accreditation.

Alley said the district must put together an "accreditation
contract proposal" for the Colorado Department of Education by July
1, 2000. The contract, which will allegedly be in effect for six
years, must specify the following:

- The district's standards, goals and requirements to be met
over the term of the contract; (this) plan should be clearly defined
with defensible data-driven/results-based instructional
programming.

- The assessments that will be used to measure each student's
progress toward and achievement of the district's adopted content
standards, including specification of an acceptable performance
level; included in this must be a "results-based" classroom
instructional plan which clearly aligns with standards and the CSAP
testing program.

- Goals and strategies to improve all student academic
achievement and to identify and reduce consistent patterns of low
academic achievement and discrepancies in academic achievement
related to race/ethnicity, gender, exceptional ability, disability,
and limited English proficiency.

Among the "assurances" that the district must include in the
contract are "evidence that the district's content standards meet or
exceed state model content standards" and "evidence that the district
assessments are either comparable to or more rigorous than state
assessments."

This consistent use of state standards and "results-based"
plans as a gauge for student learning runs completely contrary to the
school board's goal to "pursue innovations related to the ideas
presented in the works of consultant Alfie Kohn" and its mission
statement which aims at enabling "students to become productive
members of society and to grow as lifelong learners."

As a response, Alley envisions the board giving the state its
due, and nothing more. "We'll do what's required, what we have to
do," he said. "We're not the only district unhappy about this, and we
expect to hear from some of the others at the Colorado Association of
School Boards conference in December."

For the next few months, then, the directors will wrestle with
maintaining the integrity of their own vision of education while
implementing the rather rigid accreditation requirements imposed by
the state.

Don't drink and drive -
especially in October

By Karl Isberg

Statistics collected during the last two
years indicate October is the best month to drink and drive in Pagosa
Springs.

It is also the best month to be arrested
for DUI.

According to Pagosa Springs Chief of
Police Don Volger, a survey of DUI incidents within town boundaries
between January and October show two things: that October brings out
the drunken drivers and that there has been a 61 percent increase in
the number of DUI arrests from 1998 to 1999.

In 1998, reported Volger, there were 28
DUI arrests made by Pagosa Springs officers between January and
October. Three DUI arrests in November and in December of 1998
brought the yearly total to 34.

In 1999, said the chief, there were 45
DUI arrests made during the first 10 months of the year.

Only two months in 1999 saw a decline in
DUI arrests when compared to the same months in 1998. There were no
DUI arrests in Pagosa Springs in February or March of 1999, compared
to one arrest in February 1998 and two arrests in March of that
year.

Every other month from January 1999 to
October 1999, except October, showed an increase in DUI arrests.
April and May of 1999 showed increases of four DUI arrests, with five
arrests in each month. July and August of 1999 each produced
increases of three arrests over 1998 totals.

October, though, appears to be prime DUI
season in town. October 1998 produced 12 DUI arrests as did October
1999.

"It's interesting," said Volger of the
October arrest figures. "In 1998, before October, we averaged one or
two arrests per month, then had 12 arrests in October. This year we
had 12 arrests in October. The first tendency is to find a connection
to the big game hunting season and to visiting hunters; but that's
not a valid connection. The DUI arrests are not hunter-related. We
are arresting local residents."

While the October phenomenon remains a
mystery, Volger thinks he understands the 61 percent increase in DUI
arrests when the first 10 months of 1998 are compared to the same
period in 1999.

"I attribute the increase to our change
in our night-time patrol," he said. "We now have double coverage at
night, with two officers on duty. This has led to an overall increase
in the number of traffic stops we make during night-time hours, and
those stops lead to more DUI arrests."

The trend pleases the chief. "The chances
of a drunk driver being caught in Pagosa Springs have gone up
dramatically and will continue to increase as we provide more patrol
coverage and continue to give DUI intervention high priority. We
would rather put someone in jail than scrape them or their victims
off the highway."

Crabtree 'sick and tired of
Waste Management'

By John M. Motter

A citizen request for county help in
cleaning up Trujillo Road was followed by a ringing condemnation by
Commissioner Gene Crabtree of Waste Management, the county's trash
contractor.

Robert Preston, a citizen living south of
town, asked the commissioners to do something about debris he says is
cluttering Trujillo Road.

"I drive Trujillo Road frequently,"
Preston said. "The trash and debris are a disgrace. I've seen
construction materials, tires, tree limbs, boxes, bottles, cans,
nails and screws. I was told this is the sheriff's responsibility,
but he didn't return my call. I stopped at his office and was told it
is not the sheriff's responsibility."

Preston suggested that the commissioners:
fine litterers, organize a Trujillo Road clean-up day, and ask the
transfer station operator to help clean up the roadway.

"The transfer station people work for
Waste Management," said County Manager Dennis Hunt. "We can't order
them to work away from their stations."

"What bothers me is they are sitting out
there doing nothing," Preston said.

Others present in the room, including
commissioners, noted that the transfer station and landfill are the
worst locations for litter and debris.

"Landfill hours don't suit the local
contractors," said Crabtree. "On Tuesdays and Thursdays they are open
from 11 (a.m.) to 2 (p.m.). On Friday and Saturday they are open from
11 (a.m.) to 4 (p.m.). We should demand they change their
hours.

"Every time I try to call Waste
Management they are either broke down or they don't have enough help
or time," Crabtree said. "I'm sick and tired of Waste Management.
They need to go away. If they aren't interested in doing what we
want, we should see if someone else is interested. They don't have
any local workers. Someone is always driving in from Chama or
somewhere. On their way in they stop for coffee and to enjoy life. We
need to tell them to get on the stick or get out."

"I support a clean-up effort," said
Commissioner Bill Downey. "We need to ask the sheriff to enforce
anti-litter laws in that area."

In the end, the commissioners took no
formal action concerning Preston's request.

In other business Tuesday the
commissioners:

- Approved a variance from planned unit
development regulations as they apply to the Cloman Industrial Park.
The variance allows developers in the park to move from sketch plan
to final plat, and negates final plat mylar requirements.

"We are changing the PUD regulations,"
said Mike Mollica, director of county development. "This variance is
in accordance with the changes we anticipate. If others outside of
Cloman Park come to you, I suggest you provide them with variances
for similar circumstances."

- Denied a variance request submitted by
Aspen Springs resident David Been. If granted, the variance would
have required the county building department to give Been a
certificate of occupancy for a machine shop he is building on Turkey
Lane. If the Colorado Department of Transportation requires a
builder/owner to agree to certain road improvement requirements, the
county supports CDOT by refusing to issue a certificate of occupancy
until the builder/owner agrees to do what CDOT requires.

- Agreed to waive trash dumping fees for
a dumpster used by the United Methodist Church in connection with the
annual Christmas Bazaar.

- Heard a report that work on rebuilding
Eightmile Mesa Road is in progress.

A long-standing dispute regarding a
county-wide 2 percent sales tax and whether or not voters should be
allowed to decide on allocation of revenues from that tax to
Archuleta County and the town of Pagosa Springs could soon be
resolved by the Colorado Supreme Court.

Then again, maybe not.

There are two questions at this point in
time: what the Supreme Court will decide relative to the position of
opposing parties in the case, and whether or not an election
scheduled next spring for voters in Pagosa Springs might take the
steam out of any court action.

Archuleta County now has two separate
sales taxes in effect, in addition to the 3 percent sales tax levied
by the state of Colorado. One of the county taxes is a perpetual 2
percent sales tax and an additional, voter-approved 2 percent sales
tax is in place and expires on Jan. 1, 2003. Voters agreed by a slim
margin in November 1994 to authorize the second 2 percent tax.

At present, revenues from the 4 percent
sales tax is divided evenly between the county and the town. An
agreement struck between the two entities entailed several agreements
and promises, including joint road projects and agreements regarding
town use of the county jail and central dispatch service. The town
also earmarked its share of the revenues for capital improvement
projects.

In 1995, two Archuleta County residents,
Fitzhugh Havens and Earle Beasley, acting on behalf of an
organization called the "County Road User's Association," petitioned
the county to place a question on the Nov. 7, 1995, general election
ballot. That question dealt with a proposed redistribution of the 4
percent county sales tax. The proposed reallocation would give
Archuleta County 75 percent of the sales tax and 25 percent would go
to the town, effectively reducing the town's share of sales tax
revenues to 1 percent.

Archuleta County and Pagosa Springs
successfully challenged the CRUA in the 6th District Court,
preventing the question from being placed on the ballot in 1995. The
entities argued that the CRUA's petition did not include information
required by state law and the court concurred.

After a CRUA appeal, the Colorado Court
of Appeals overturned the district court decision and ordered the
county to hold the election.

The county and town then asked the
Colorado Supreme Court to review the case and the Court of Appeals
stayed its order until such time the Supreme Court either agreed or
disagreed with the request to hear the case.

Prior to the Supreme Court's announcement
that it will hear the case, Pagosa Springs trustees took action to
safeguard sales tax revenues collected within town limits. By some
estimates, as much as 90 percent of the total sales tax collected in
the county is collected within the Pagosa Springs town
limits.

On Sept. 7, 1999, the town trustees
passed an ordinance making clear the town's intent to protect
revenues that support its capital improvement efforts. The emergency
ordinance concerns imposition of a "town-wide sales tax not to exceed
3 percent."

Further language in the ordinance makes
clear the conditions under which such a sales tax would be imposed,
if approved by the voters. If approved, the 3 percent sales tax will
"become effective immediately only if the existing Archuleta County
sales tax is repealed, repealed and readopted, determined not to be
effective, or expires in whole or in part in an amount greater than
one percent."

Harrington said the move by the town
trustees was also taken in light of their desire not to alter
significant relationships between town and county. If the allocation
is in jeopardy and the voters in town agree to the proposal in April,
trustees indicated they would still be willing to consider
cooperation with the county concerning sales tax revenues, but noted
the relationship would rest on a different foundation.

"The town and county agreed years ago to
split those sales tax revenues 50-50, " said Harrington, "with some
provisions concerning how the money could be used: joint road
projects, jail and dispatch services and the like. To change the
allocation of the revenues and the relationship that underlies it
could unravel a very productive relationship. Many of the items towns
and counties have historically had conflict over, we've tried to deal
with in our agreements. We've successfully created a positive working
environment for the two entities. To date, it's been very effective,
and we don't want it to change."

But, change it might, and control of the
sales tax situation now appears to rest in the chambers of the
Colorado Supreme Court and in the voting booth in Pagosa
Springs.

New town hall gets
$250,000

By Karl Isberg

A Nov. 4 message from the Colorado
Department of Local Affairs to Pagosa Springs Mayor Ross Aragon
notified the mayor that Pagosa Springs will receive grant assistance
from the state for construction of a new town hall.

Bob Brooks, of the Department of Local
Affairs, stated his department received a recommendation from the
state's Energy and Mineral Impact Assistance Advisory Committee that
the town receive a $250,000 grant to help with the town hall
project.

On Oct. 22, Aragon and Town Administrator
Jay Harrington attended a meeting with the committee at Ouray and
made a presentation with a request for a $300,000 Energy Impact
Grant. The money for the grant program derives revenues from state
severance tax and mineral lease revenues from oil, gas, carbon
dioxide, coal and metals extracted in Colorado.

Following review of the Pagosa Springs
proposal, the committee recommended the partial funding of $250,000
and Brooks said he concurs with the committee recommendation and is
offering to enter into a contract for that grant amount.

A contract for the grant will be executed
and the grant money will be forwarded to the town.

"We asked for $300,000" said Harrington,
"and considering the limited energy impacts in our area, the amount
the state offered is very good. We'll be looking for the contract to
arrive."

Town officials propose beginning
construction of a new town hall on Hot Springs Boulevard near the
intersection with Apache Street in June or July of 2000. Completion
of construction and occupancy of the new building is expected by July
2001.

Harrington said the proposed construction
cost of the 13,000-square-foot Town Hall is $1.5 million. Sale of the
current Town Hall property at the intersection of U.S. 160 and Lewis
Street is expected to produce $300,000 to be put toward construction
costs. The remainder of the project cost will be satisfied with sales
tax revenues taken in by the town during the year of
construction.

An acre of land on Hot Springs Boulevard
now occupied by the Pagosa Veterinary Clinic has been acquired as
part of the new Town Hall site. Once built, the new Town Hall will
anchor a three-phase project on approximately four acres, expected to
include a 22,000-square-foot community center and, eventually, a
child care facility. Funds for the community center are currently
being raised by a non-profit organization.

Davis, Feazel, Lee resume board
duties

By Roy Starling

Following the Nov. 2 election and Tuesday
night's swearing in and reorganization, the School District 50 Joint
board of directors will pretty much have the same faces in the same
places for the next four years.

Randall Davis, Carol Feazel and Russell
Lee were sworn in at Tuesday's regular monthly meeting. Davis, who
began serving on the board in 1979, returns for another term after
defeating former board member Laura Haynes. Feazel, who was
originally appointed to replace Haynes, defeated challenger Kathryn
Pokorney. Lee ran unopposed.

In their reorganization, the directors
retained Davis as the board's president and Lee as vice-president.
Director Clifford Lucero will continue to serve as secretary. Lee
will also relieve Director Jon Forrest of his duties as the board's
BOCS representative.

The board appointed Feazel as its
delegate to the Colorado Association of School Boards and as its
legislative representative.

- Agreed to purchase from Mary Pierce
nine lots adjacent to the high school for $110,000; the district will
also pay all closing costs.

Letters

Three choices

Dear David,

Evidently, there are some PLPOA property owners who are not
happy with the covenants. Some only want the covenants enforced that
they like. However, the enforcement of covenants is not a
discretionary decision. The covenants are legally binding and they
"run with the land."

For many years, some covenants were ignored and not enforced
and others were applied to everyone except special groups. It was
obvious to the majority of PLPOA property owners that they wanted a
change. And in 1998, they voted overwhelmingly for change.

We need to be constantly reminded that the purpose of the
various covenants (Declarations of Restrictions) and ECC rules is to
maintain property values. Property values are determined by many
factors including views, locations, and quality and size of nearby
homes. That is the prime purpose of the covenants and we need to
enforce them to achieve these goals.

I strongly encourage association property owners to read the
covenants (Declaration of Restrictions) that apply to one's own
subdivision. Since all of us bought the covenants that were
applicable to the subdivision in which we reside when we purchased
our property within the PLPOA, then it behooves us to become familiar
with those Declarations of Restrictions.

The PLPOA board cannot ignore the covenants. They were
originally drawn up, along with an outline of enforcement, by the
developer. They are legally recorded documents. This board should not
elect to choose which covenants they like and will enforce.

As one who helped change the covenants in our subdivision for
the purpose of maintaining and improving our property values, I know
it is possible to affect a change. It took us eight months and over
$1,400 but we worked together and got it done.

If you think a change is needed, then work within the system.
The board or ECC cannot change the Declarations of Restrictions, only
the vote of a majority of PLPOA property owners can do so. Until
then, we must live by the rules we have in place.

The alternative to our various covenants, and they are not
uniform throughout all subdivisions, is no rules with the resulting
lowering of property values.

But, until the property owners are ready to work to change the
rules, following these covenants is no different from following the
laws of the county, and the building codes, and the laws of Colorado
or the United States.

We have three choices: One, live and work within the
association and its procedures to improve and enhance our life here.
Two, be unhappy with what we have and work toward eliminating
covenants with a result of lower property values. Three, continue to
be unhappy but unwilling to work toward any change. In that choice,
moving is the answer.

Sincerely,

George R. Esterly

Come on down

Dear Editor,

I would like to say "thank you" to John Feazel for his
enlightening letter in last week's SUN. Now I finally know where he
is coming from - Neanderthalville.

I particularly liked his statement "If I don't need it, then
nobody else does, period." Shall we bring back the cave and the
club?

I realize no human on earth could ever change the way he thinks
but I'd like to suggest that he become better educated (that's what
libraries aim to do, by the way) before he harangues the general
public on an issue he clearly knows nothing about. Our ballot issue
for the Sisson Library was not about raising taxes, if he had taken
the time to read the proposal.

As chairperson of the board for the Sisson Library, I invite
him to visit more often and see our overcrowded children's area, our
book collection averaging a dated 1984 age and our carpet, which we
are making do with by covering the worn spots with runners. And, as
for being politicians, well anyone that knows me knows "what you see
is what you get" - no hidden agenda here, only 19 years of no pay
public service - can he say as much?

I think he also needs to do some research in theology and the
earth sciences, all of which are available for no charge at his
library.

So, as the game show host says, "come on down." John, I promise
lots of smiles and lots of learning - for free.

Sincerely,

Kay Grams

P.S. Our world is what we make it.

Women's suffrage

Dear David,

Award-winning documentary filmmaker Ken Burns (who brought "The
Civil War" and "Baseball" to our living rooms) has produced an
exciting new documentary entitled "Not For Ourselves Alone: The Story
of Elizabeth Cady Stanton and Susan B. Anthony," and woman's
suffrage. The film will air on PBS on Sunday, Nov. 7, and Monday,
Nov. 8, both starting at 8 p.m. EST. Stanton and Anthony, along with
many others (both men and women) fought to repeal laws that allowed
slavery and barred all women from public speaking professions,
property ownership and child custody, if married in some states, and
of course, the vote.

Few American women realize that it required almost 75 years for
the suffragists to achieve the vote that we all take for granted
today. From 1848, when a resolution calling for woman suffrage was
adopted at the Seneca Fall Convention, to 1920, when the 19th
amendment to the Constitution was finally ratified (a decade after
the deaths of Stanton and Anthony, and 144 years after the
Declaration of Independence was signed), several generations of
suffragists had labored tirelessly for the right of women to vote in
the United States.

In honor of these women and men, The League of Women Voters of
Archuleta County has placed a copy of "One Woman, One Vote:
Rediscovering the Woman Suffrage Movement," edited by Marjorie
Spruill Wheeler, in the Ruby Sisson Library. The League encourages
all citizens to watch this important program and read the book;
because, not only have men and women fought in the past to attain the
right to vote, but they continue the fight to preserve our political
freedoms that we so highly value today - it is important that we know
their deeds and remember their sacrifices.

Sincerely,

Windsor Chacey

Bus system

Dear Editor,

This is a letter of thanks to all of those people responsible
for implementing The Mountain Express Bus system of Pagosa
Springs.

I work as a dishwasher at The Pie Shoppe in Fairfield and would
not be able to keep my job without dependable transportation.

The white Mountain Express shuttle shows up at Turkey Springs
Trading Post every weekday at 8:30 a.m. and takes me safely to
Fairfield.

After work I catch the bus at City Market which takes me back
to Turkey Springs.

The bus drivers are courteous and the ride is comfortable. Most
important - they are dependable.

If you want a fun outing for your children, get a bus schedule
and go for a ride on the Mountain Express. The scenery is beautiful
and the other passengers are fun to meet and to chat with.

Sincerely,

Stacy Denton

Support the youth

Dear Editor,

This Friday I will travel to Aspen to participate in the Miss
Teen Colorado USA 2000 pageant, which will be held on Nov. 6 and Nov.
7.

I would like to take this opportunity to thank all the great
people and the many businesses in this community for their support
and sponsorship in helping to make this trip happen for me.

To all my family and friends for their help in baking all the
goodies for the bake sales and just being there, thanks for all you
have done each and every one of you.

Sincerely,

Natalie Ortega

E-mail

Transfer fee

Dear Editor,

At the end of July, the PLPOA directors signed a contract with
Colorado Management and Associates (CMA) to provide bookkeeping
services and a general manager for the PLPOA at a cost of $12,000 per
month. CMA was the only company the directors entertained; no
competitive bids were sought (against the board's own policy). During
July, many property owners were concerned about the costs associated
with contracting with an out-of-town management firm and what
additional costs might be hidden in the contract. The property owners
were assured that the contract had been thoroughly reviewed and that
the costs to the property owners would actually be the same or less
than what it had been the previous year and that there would be no
reduction in the services provided. A recent PLPOA newsletter also
stated how pleased the board was with CMA and how using CMA was a
cost savings over the previous staff.

On Oct. 1, CMA started assessing a $75-per-lot transfer fee to
each piece of property that is sold within the Pagosa Lakes
subdivisions. The Pagosa Springs Area Association of Realtors
estimates that approximately 500 pieces of property change hands in
Pagosa Lakes each year. This includes houses and vacant lots. This
works out to be an additional $37,500 charge by CMA, in addition to
the $144,000 per year that they are being paid by the PLPOA. The
$37,500 goes directly to CMA and ends up in Denver. This service was
provided at no charge by the PLPOA staff in the past. But now the
directors have succumbed to supporting these extortion practices of
CMA.

At the board meeting on Oct. 14, a PSAAR representative was
allowed to voice the concerns of the Realtors toward this new and
excessive charge. Director Pat Curtis, board president, would not
allow any other comments on the subject from property owners. The
large group of property owners were "stonewalled" by Director Curtis
in a dictatorial fashion.

Director Curtis started out by commenting that the transfer fee
was a "non-negotiable" part of the contract with CMA. Unfortunately
the majority of the directors rushed to sign the contract without
arguing this point and the cost is now being placed on the property
owners. When asked about the transfer fee, one director told me that
he didn't think that the contract with CMA allowed CMA to charge such
a fee. Obviously he did not read the contract completely before
signing it. It appears that many of the directors have forgotten that
they were elected (or appointed in the case of most of the directors)
to represent the property owners for the betterment of the
association, not for the financial gain of CMA.

The directors have made a huge mistake by contracting with CMA.
It is time to break the contract and to remind the directors that
their job is to make decisions for the PLPOA that are in the best
interest of the property owners.

Craig Givens

Start waking up

Dear Editor,

Well, it's about time some more people who think they own
property start waking up. Just maybe they are starting to see the
PLPOA for what it really is: a power-hungry, money-spending,
mind-controlling, can't-mind-your-own-business organization.

Elaine Hyde's letter hits it right on the nail head. Her first
question about the population being pleased could be answered by a
group of retired property owners getting together, acquiring a list
of all property owners and composing a letter outlining all of the
outrageous incidents against other property owners, needless
lawsuits, increased monies and needless expenditures over the years
and sending it to everyone on the list asking for a signature on a
petition to abolish the PLPOA and put in a set of covenants and leave
it at that.

Elaine has the idea so she should be the one to head it up and
I would even help in what ever way I could to make this abolishment a
reality. One does not have to live in the PLPOA boundaries to help.
After all if the cancer starts in one area, it can spread to another
and another till it takes over the whole body. Marilyn Scarpa would
be another to help. After all, people, you should put your actions
where your mouth is.

Let's get it done and then we could live as our founding
fathers wanted us to live - free.

Randall Mettscher

Philosophy of life

Dear Editor,

Kate Terry has a line in her Local Chatter of Philosophy of
Life that seems applicable to the PLPOA . . . "Never underestimate
the power of stupid people in large groups."

M.R. Tippit

Compliment

Dear David,

I enjoyed reading the Oct. 21 issue of the SUN, but I have a
question about your relationship with Sally Hameister. Do you
compliment, or complement, each other's work?

Keep smiling, and Hook 'em Horns.

Gene Wissler

Austin, Texas

Editor's note: I compliment Sally for her work; the SUN does
not try to complement her work.

Funeral services were held Tuesday, Nov.
9, in Thayer, Mo., at Myrtle Cemetery. In lieu of flowers the family
requests contributions be made to Community Connections 281 Sayer
Drive Number 200, Durango, CO 81301.

People

Pagosa Profile

Jim Miller

Parks Maintenance supervisor

Town of Pagosa Springs

Where were you born and
raised?

"I was born in Riverside, California. I
was an Air Force brat, so I traveled extensively. We lived in Alabama
and North Dakota, and I ended up going to high school in Altus,
Oklahoma."

Where were you educated?

"I graduated from Altus High School as a
member of the Class of 1967. I went to the University of California,
at Berkeley, and dropped out the same year as the
Unabomber."

When did you come to Pagosa
Springs?

"I moved here two years ago."

What is your domestic status?

"My wife Lynn and I have been married
three years."

What work did you do prior to your
employment by the Town of Pagosa Springs?

"I've been doing landscaping work since
shovels were made of stone. I spent 20 years managing private estates
in Idaho and California. Malibu was the last place I worked. It is
one of the nicest spots in California, and I couldn't wait to get out
of there."

What do you like best about your
work?

"Happy, growing, newly-planted
trees."

What do you like least about your
job?

"Taraxacum Oficinale - the dandelion. I
don't know the Latin name for cigarette butts."

Sports Page

Lady Pirates wrap up surprising
season

By Karl Isberg

With losses in two of three matches, the 1999 Lady Pirates
volleyball team ended its season at the Class 3A regional tournament
at Manitou Springs on Nov. 6.

Pagosa Springs finished the season with a 20-6 record, winning
the Intermountain League and District 1 championships.

Losses to regional champion Manitou Springs and to second-place
Middle Park, and a win over Olathe, gave Pagosa the third-place spot
at the regional tournament. The two top teams advanced to the state
championship tournament at Denver.

The Lady Pirates played eight games in their three matches at
Manitou and won four of the games. One more win and one less loss
would have kept the season alive for one more week.

It was not to be.

Middle Park

The Middle Park Panthers were the first opponent on the slate
for the Ladies. The Panthers play in the large and always tough
Metropolitan League and finished fourth in the regular-season
standings.

Middle Park began to gain momentum at the end of the Metro
League season and turned on the steam at the district tournament,
finishing second behind champion Lutheran and preventing perennial
favorite Faith Christian from advancing to the regionals.

The Panthers carried their momentum into the regional tourney
at Manitou, but were unable to bring it to bear in the first game of
the match against the Lady Pirates.

Pagosa jumped out to a 3-0 lead, taking the serve from the
Panthers with a kill by senior middle hitter Mandy Forrest and
scoring with an ace serve by Katie Lancing, a kill by Meigan Canty
and a tip by Forrest.

The Ladies increased their lead to 7-1 with two gift points on
Panther errors, a kill by Nicole Buckley and an ace by Forrest. The
Lady Pirates had the game in control and their opponents seemed
stunned.

Pagosa's lead went to 10-2 as the Panthers had troubles with
two serves by Andrea Ash, then hit a ball out of bounds.

Middle Park scored three unanswered points before Buckley
killed, Lancing hit an ace to the back line and a formidable Lady
Pirate tandem block forced Middle Park's outside hitter to put the
ball into the net.

With Pagosa in front 13-6, Middle Park managed one final point.
A perfect backward dink by Forrest put Pagosa on the brink of victory
and a stuff block by Lancing and Canty completed the 15-7 Lady Pirate
win.

Pagosa got the first point of the second game of the match when
an overly-eager Panther hitter committed an error. The Panthers
settled down and quickly built a 5-1 advantage. The Lady Pirates
seemed to lack concentration and communication. Tiffanie Hamilton
scored with a kill down the line but the Panthers came back to extend
their lead to 13-2.

The Lady Pirates did not give up the ghost. Ash scored with an
ace serve and a fourth point went on the board for the Ladies after a
Middle Park passing problem. The Panthers surrendered two more points
with hitting errors and Janae Esterbrook closed the gap to 13-7 with
a kill off a pass from Forrest. But the Middle Park lead was too
great to overcome and, with the serve back, the Panthers ended the
game 15-7.

The third game of the match proved the critical game for each
team. Both squads were needing to win the game and match to have a
reasonable chance of advancing to the state tournament. While each
team figured to defeat Olathe, each had to face Manitou Springs, the
No. 2 ranked Class 3A team.

The teams began the third game by trading eight side outs
without a score. Finally, a poor Lady Pirate pass strayed above the
net and a Panther stuff block put a point on the scoreboard for
Middle Park. Pagosa came back with a successful back-row attack by
Forrest, and took a 2-1 lead with a Panther mistake.

Middle Park went in front 4-2 as Pagosa hitters put attacks out
of bounds. Pagosa got a point on a Panther error and Buckley tied the
score by winning a battle for a ball above the net.

The battle see-sawed again: Middle Park got a point when a Lady
Pirate made contact with the net and a kill to the back line put the
Panthers in front 6-4. Pagosa got a point when a Panther attack went
awry. A series of great back-court digs by the Ladies led to a
successful tip by Lancing and the score was knotted 6-6.

Middle Park went ahead 7-6 with an ace and Lancing tied the
score with a stuff block. Pagosa took its last lead of the match
getting a gift point from the Panthers and a point on a tremendous
kill of an errant Middle Park pass by Forrest.

Three stuff blocks led to Middle Park scores, and the Panther
outside hitters nailed two kills for points. Trailing 12-9, the
Ladies got the serve on a kill by Esterbrook but could not make it
pay off. Middle Park took the ball back and ran the table for the
15-9 win.

"We started absolutely awesome," said Lady Pirate coach
Penné Hamilton. "We pretty much set them back on their heels.
In the second game, we made a bunch of errors right at the beginning
and dug ourselves into a hole. We couldn't dig our way out. We had
our chance in the third game when we were ahead 9-7 and didn't take
advantage of it. We simply made too many mistakes."

Forrest had 12 kills against Middle Park. Buckley put five
kills down, while Lancing and Hamilton each had four kills.

Lancing had 20 setting assists during the match, beginning what
would be one of the best days of her young career. The sophomore was
clearly the finest setter at the tournament.

Hamilton managed 13 digs in the back court. Esterbrook had
eight digs against the Panthers; Ash had seven digs during the match.
Lancing hit four ace serves.

Olathe

The Olathe Pirates were a mystery prior to the regional
tournament. The team captured the regular season championship in the
Western Slope League yet finished third at the district tournament
behind Hotchkiss and Aspen. Olathe's lineup lacked height and
firepower along the net, but compensated with a scrappy attitude and
a solid back-court defense.

Trailing 4-0 in the first game against the Lady Pirates, the
Olathe players must have wondered whether they belonged at the
regional event. Pagosa got points from Forrest, Buckley and Lancing,
then Hamilton caught fire at the outside scoring three times to put
her team ahead 8-2.

The Lady Pirates' onslaught continued while Olathe managed to
collect nine points before game's end, all the points unearned.
Pagosa went on to the 15-9 victory with scores from Esterbrook,
Lancing, Forrest and Hamilton.

Olathe was not a pushover, however, and the team came back with
a strong effort in the second game, forcing the Lady Pirates to fight
for a 17-15 win. Olathe proved later in the day that their effort was
no fluke, as the team took Middle Park to three games before losing
to the Panthers.

Pagosa was ahead by a comfortable 12-4 margin in Game 2 when
Olathe began to climb back into contention. The Lady Pirates had
earned points from Canty, Forrest and Lancing and the Pagosa blockers
stifled what little attack Olathe could muster. What allowed Olathe
back into the game was a series of Pagosa errors.

Forrest got the Ladies into a position to win with an ace that
put Pagosa in front 14-11, but a hitting error gave Olathe a point
and the game was tied as two ace serves got past the Lady Pirates'
serve receive.

Each team gave up a point with a mistake before two great
back-court digs gave the ball to Forrest who, in turn, put a perfect
dink to the back line for a point. The game ended when Buckley
slammed a kill to the floor from the outside.

"While the team as a whole didn't play as well against Olathe,"
said coach Hamilton, "Mandy Forrest played a nearly flawless match.
It was nice to see us beat them in two games; they were a scrappy
team."

Hamilton had six kills against Olathe. Forrest had five kills,
while Buckley, Esterbrook and Lancing each had four kills.

Forrest put up six stuff blocks during the match. Lancing had
16 assists and two ace serves.

Both Esterbrook and Lancing made six digs against Olathe.

Manitou Springs

Pagosa's only chance to advance to the state tournament hinged
on a two-game victory over powerful Manitou Springs (23-3), the Tri
Peaks League and District 6 champs.

While the Lady Pirates lost the match in three games, it was
apparent there was little difference between the teams. On another
day, the match might have gone another way.

The first game of the match was tight from beginning to end,
with Pagosa's strength matching Manitou's strength along the net. The
Lady Pirates took an early 3-1 lead with two kills by Esterbrook, but
the Mustangs roared back to lead 4-3.

Esterbrook tied the game and the Ladies used a Mustang error
and a dink by Canty to go in front 6-4. Forrest scored a point with a
stuff of Manitou's best middle hitter and a Mustang mistake put
Pagosa ahead 8-5.

Manitou surged to tie the game at 8-8, but a kill by Buckley
and a dump to the 10-foot line by Lancing put Pagosa in front 10-8.
The Lady Pirates led 12-9 but gave up two points with hitting
errors.

Hamilton returned serve to Pagosa and the Ladies scored with a
textbook back-row kill by Forrest and two ace serves by Hamilton. The
first game belonged to the Lady Pirates.

Manitou came back to win the next two games 15-7, 15-6, but the
scores do not reflect the closeness of the games. Each game was
characterized by lengthy, scoreless exchanges of side outs, with the
first game colored by an unusually high number of calls against
Pagosa by the floor official for incidental contact with the net.

The second game of the match was knotted through the early
going, with Manitou ahead 7-6 before the Mustangs made their move.
Manitou earned 4 of 8 points to secure the victory. Pagosa earned 5
of 7 points, with the back-row kill by Forrest remaining effective.
Hamilton and Buckley scored from outside, and Canty got a point on a
block in the middle.

Manitou made several mistakes at the start of the third game
and, with an ace by Lancing, the Lady Pirates had a 4-0 lead. Buckley
got a point with a block to keep Pagosa in front 5-1. Manitou came
back strong, creating a 6-5 lead with effective quick sets to the
middle hitter and profiting from several Lady Pirate errors. Pagosa
got its last point on a Manitou error before the Mustangs used a
series of well-hit balls inside Pagosa blocks to take the game and
match.

"As a coach," said Hamilton, "I can look back on the season and
see this match as one of the best we had. It was a real battle, and
the scores don't reflect how tough a battle it was. You had to be
there to know. The girls fought to the end, and it was good to
see."

Forrest had a spectacular outing against the Mustangs, with 20
kills against one of the best Class 3A defenses in the state. Buckley
looked anything but a sophomore as she nailed nine kills against
Manitou. Esterbrook ended her Lady Pirates career with seven kills;
Hamilton and Canty each had six kills.

Lancing put up 34 setting assists during the match and had
eight digs and an ace. Hamilton produced 10 digs on defense and hit
an ace against Manitou.

Successful season

Though a trip to the state tournament is not in the offing for
the Lady Pirates this season, their 20-6 record would be welcomed by
all but eight or so teams in Class 3A. Pagosa forged a record that,
at the start of the year, would have been reckless to predict in
light of the fact 5 of 6 starters had little or no varsity
experience.

"I lost six seniors after 1998," said coach Hamilton, "and
returned only two players from that team - only one starter. We also
started a new setter this year. You look at that, and it is easy to
see the girls had a fine season."

Another undefeated Intermountain League season, the fourth
consecutive IML schedule without a defeat came, said Hamilton, "when
the rest of the league underestimated us. We dominated our
competition all season long. I attribute part of that success to our
senior leadership on the court from Mandy and Janae, and part of it
to the fact that our sophomores, Katie and Nicole, grew up so
quickly. We got quality play from our juniors Tiffanie and Meigan and
good serving and defense from Andrea."

Hamilton said she and assistants Shelly Wedemeyer and Connie
O'Donnell were pleased by the progress the team made. "Things we
never anticipated a year ago happened with this team and we were
really pleasantly surprised in that respect."

The program loses two senior starters in Forrest and Esterbrook
and loses senior Kayla Mackey as well. A strong nucleus of starters
will return: Canty and Hamilton, who will be seniors, and Lancing and
Buckley who will be juniors. Ash, a defensive specialist and
designated server, will also be a junior.

"For me it's the same as for all volleyball coaches," said
Hamilton. "When you're finished with your season, you start thinking
about how to improve your program. I'll meet with Connie and Shelly
next week and we'll begin to develop our plan for the year."

Pirates take on Fort Morgan in
state playoffs

By John M. Motter

Pagosa's football Pirates take on Fort Morgan Saturday in the
first round of the Colorado Class 3A football playoffs.

Coach Myron Stretton's Pagosa gridders earned the right to
enter the playoffs by capturing the Intermountain League title
without losing an IML game. Their opponent, the Fort Morgan Mustangs
are unbeaten in the Northern Tri-Valley League, unbeaten this season
by anyone, and ranked first among 3A schools in Colorado. Game time
is 1 p.m. at the Fort Morgan stadium.

"We're looking at their game films," Stretton said. "They are
obviously a good football team, both offensively and defensively.
They've beaten everyone they've played by a big score. They have a
good quarterback who runs the ball well, a tailback who looks fast, a
big fullback, and a big receiver.

"As good as they are, I think we're ready for them," Stretton
added. "We'll have the advantage of having played in tight games. I
have a lot of confidence in our guys. Last week's game with Cortez
was a good warmup. My only disappointment is losing to Cortez. I
think we are a better team than they are."

Pagosa dropped a 34-19 season-ending encounter to the Class 4A
Panthers Saturday. The loss reduced Pagosa's season record to 7-3,
5-0 in the IML.

No one was injured during last Saturday's game. Punter and deep
safety Darin Lister did not play because of a tender ankle injured a
week earlier in the Del Norte game. Lister will probably be ready for
Fort Morgan, Stretton said. Multi-purpose player Lonnie Lucero, also
helped from the field during the Del Norte game, played Saturday
without a sign of a limp.

Cortez won the coin toss Saturday and elected to receive.
Pagosa's Clint Shaw kicked off in place of Lister, the Pirates'
regular kicker. Shaw's kick sailed high in the direction of Pagosa
Peak and dropped into the arms of Panther Josh Lee. The pigskin
didn't stop there, but tumbled onto the turf where it was recovered
by Pagosa's Nathan Stretton on the 27-yard line. The filled west
bleachers plus one sideline full of Pirate fans shouted and pumped
their arms in the air.

The Pagosa 11 got the message. Quarterback Ronnie Janowsky
whistled a pass to no one in particular on the first Pagosa play of
the series. On succeeding plays, tailback Shaw pierced the Panthers
defense for eight yards, Lucero ran for three yards and a first down,
then 13 yards and another first down, and Shaw slipped through the
middle for a touchdown. Backup extra point specialist Josh Trujillo
split the uprights, and Pagosa was on top 7-0 before anyone's cleats
were dirty. Now there were more fans on the sidelines than in the
bleachers.

Shaw kicked off again. This time the Cortez receiver captured
and kept the ball. The Panthers started on their own 34-yard line.
Having moved the ball a scant two yards in three plays, Cortez
punted.

Pagosa again moved the ball, but this time a holding penalty
prevented the Pirates from making a first down. After an exchange of
punts, Shaw raced around the right side of the Cortez line for 25
yards and a first down on the Cortez 10-yard line. A Cortez
interception in the endzone two plays later ended the Pirates scoring
threat.

Cortez then rode the passing arm of Josh Mortenson for the next
two minutes, finally scoring on a Mortenson pass to Bryce Tanner.
Another pass picked up two points on the extra point try. Cortez lead
8-7 with 2:36 left in the period.

By the time the first period ended, another Pagosa threat
penetrated to the Cortez 22-yard line before a clipping penalty
killed the drive.

Cortez rang up another TD early in the second period, but
failed on the extra point try. Before the half ended, the Pirates
again threatened, this time reaching the Cortez 1-yard line. An
incomplete Janowsky to Tyrel Ross pass in the endzone ended the
threat. The halftime score was 14-7 Cortez.

Only one score was recorded during the third period, a 1-yard
plunge by Adam Hermann for the Panthers. The extra point try was no
good and the period ended with Cortez on top 20-7.

Cortez scored twice in the early stages of the final period
before Pagosa got back into the offensive groove. Pagosa's next
scoring effort was fueled by Janowsky's passes to Ross and Lucero
before Shaw blasted over from the 4-yard line. Trujillo's extra-point
kick was no good and the score was 34-13 in favor of Cortez with 5
minutes, 30 seconds remaining in the game.

The game's final TD was scored by Trujillo after the Pirates
retained possession of the ball on a drive that used up three
minutes.

Mountain League honors
Kurt-Mason, Dach

By Roy Starling

For the fourth year in a row, Pirate center midfielder Seth
Kurt-Mason has been named to the Mountain League all-conference team,
while sweeper Peter Dach received honorable mention from the league's
coaches.

"You'd want a guy like Seth on any team," Pirate soccer coach
Lindsey Kurt-Mason said. "He's such a leader in games and at
practice. Even kids from other teams looked up to him, and other
coaches obviously liked him."

What made Seth one of the premier players in the league?
According to his coach, plenty of things.

"He's extremely creative, has great footwork, excellent speed
and he just dominates in the midfield," he said. "He has some of the
best moves I've ever seen and definitely the best handspring
throw-in. He's also a great playmaker. He can see things developing
on the field and that's how he manages to be in the middle of every
play."

Dach, who earned the moniker "Superman" from loyal Pirates
fans, has impressed his coach and opposing players the past three
years with his deceptive speed, his patience and perfect timing when
approaching an enemy ball handler.

Kurt-Mason recalls that when Dach joined the team as a
freshman, "he was pretty meek, so he didn't play much." But it didn't
take long for the mild-mannered sweeper to develop an attitude and
become one of the Pirates' hardest working and most reliable
players.

"Peter left his skin on the field," Kurt-Mason said. "He played
every game at the highest level he could play. This whole season, the
kids - from forwards to goalie - counted on Peter. He was a vocal
leader who understood the game and his role in it."

Others named to the all-conference team were Nelson Lamb (who
just nosed out Seth as the top vote getter), Carl DeSelm and Michael
Burleigh of Telluride; Kyle Anderson, Erik Bergmann, Billy Ziotacha
and Jenna Velardi of Crested Butte; Jordan Batchelder and Chris
Hughes of Ouray-Ridgway; and Rory Martinez and Chris Smithwick of
Ignacio.

In addition to Dach, the following players received honorable
mention: Tyler Hawk-Erskine and Sean McCarthy of Telluride, Dan
O'Brien of Ouray-Ridgway and Royal White of Crested Butte.

Community News

Local
Chatter

By Kate Terry

Kate gets kissed by a
llama

Have you ever been kissed by a llama?

I have. His name is Rigatoni. He's four months old, a beautiful
mass of soft fur in shades of brown, tan and white, with big
sparkling brown eyes. He's one of the 80 llamas on the FireFly Ranch
owned by Jamie and Doug Sharp.

Saturday, at the very successful Civic Club's Christmas Bazaar,
the Sharps and Susie and Dave Belt, who own and operate Echo Mountain
Alpacas, shared a booth and it was there that I learned about these
two fascinating businesses.

The Bazaar was a good place for this. People were lined up at
the door when it opened at 8 a.m. and kept a steady stream - going
and coming - all day.

On Sunday I was lucky for the Belts did a special tour for a
group of people from Scotland, and Jamie Sharp gave me a special
tour. That was where I "met" Rigatoni. (I'd like to think that he
kept nuzzling me because of "me" but I have a feeling he nuzzles
everyone!)

Alpacas and llamas are both from the camel family. One might
get them confused, but that can easily be taken care of by going on a
tour. FireFly Ranch is a working ranch so tours are once a week, on
Wednesdays, at 1 p.m. The telephone number is 264-6614 and it's
located out Snowball Road. The barns are painted blue. Easy to
spot.

The tours at Echo Mountain Alpacas are Tuesdays through
Saturdays at 1 p.m. The telephone number is 731-2729. It is located
at 678 Dichoso Street. The street starts on South Pagosa Boulevard
and cuts across Meadows Drive, so you can get there by way of South
Pagosa Boulevard or Meadows Drive. They have a limited supply of
alpaca fibers for sale as well as some clothing items. They offer
breeding stock for sale and offer boarding services.

The Belts would like for more local people to visit them. They
have tourists, many from out of the country, like Sunday's bunch from
Scotland and those from Peru last week. But local people don't know
they are there and the tours are free.

Jamie has a business called "Fibers" located on the ranch: as
you enter keep going straight. Here she teaches classes in spinning
and Susie Belt teaches classes in felting. For sale are looms,
stuffed animals, wonderful books about llamas for children, and other
llama related things, and wonderful yarns in gorgeous colors.

A club has been formed for weavers, called "Weavers." The idea
is to get fiber artists in the area together, to socialize and
eventually from a guild and bring in guest speakers. Please call
Jamie if you are a weaver.

I think that I will always remember the wonderful feeling I had
when I was surrounded by the gentle llamas. No pushing, just the
feeling of being brushed by bunches of soft fur.

Jamie had called in "the girls" (the females) to eat. Llamas
and alpacas are so light on their feet, it seems they could easily be
blown away, but not necessarily so for the llama herds sheep (coyotes
don't like llamas). A tour of either ranch is a wonderful way to
entertain a guest. Pure fun.

Fun on the run

Consider the case of an Illinois man who left the snow-filled
streets of Chicago for a Florida vacation. His wife was on a business
trip and was planning to meet him there the next day. When he reached
his hotel, he decided to send his wife a quick e-mail. Unable to find
the scrap of paper on which he had her e-mail address, he did his
best to type it in from memory.

Unfortunately, he missed one letter and his note was directed
instead to an elderly preacher's wife whose husband had passed away
only the day before. When the grieving widow clicked her e-mail open,
she took one look at the monitor, let out a piercing scream, and fell
to the floor in a dead faint.

At the sound, her family rushed into the room and saw this note
on the screen:

"Dearest wife,

Just got checked in.

Everything prepared for your arrival tomorrow.

Signed,

Your eternally loving husband.

P.S. Sure is hot down here."

Chamber News

By Sally Hameister

Kiosk keeps Chamber on cutting edge

Five new members to share with you this week and eleven
renewals continuing the "Year of the Awesome Responses."

Morna, Suellen and I couldn't be more pleased with the prompt
and enthusiastic response we've enjoyed during this year's membership
renewal campaign. We are most grateful to all of you for your
continued support of our efforts in your behalf and pledge to carry
on with your best interests in mind. To those of you who might need a
little nudge, I will be making some personal calls to chat with you -
how's that for a warning? On to our new members.

Welcome to Cascade Water/Coffee Service with Daryl Leeper at
the helm. This business is located at 1000 South Lake Street in
Farmington, N. M. Cascade offers delivery at either your home of the
office. Their product line carries purified bottled water and office
coffee break supplies, paper products, coffee brewers and water
coolers. If you would like to learn more about Cascade Water/Coffee
Service, please give Daryl a call at 800-416-1859.

Another out-of-area business joins us this week, Maiman
Financial located at 1315 Main Avenue, Suite 221, in Durango. Heather
Tautges is a residential and commercial mortgage broker and the
person in charge at Maiman. These folks specialize in lot loans,
construction loans, home improvement loans, and equity lines of
credit. If you would like to learn more about Maiman Financial,
please give Heather a call at (970) 382-5950.

Our old pal John Porter joins us next with A Reading Society
and Ensemble presenting Thursday Night Live. You will have the
opportunity to congratulate this group tonight at their first
presentation and performance at Loredana's. This is Pagosa's first
dinner-theatre offering and will be offered to you on the second
Thursday of each month with new ideas and material. The cast will
render live readings of plays, especially vintage television and
radio classics. Sounds like lots of fun to me and presents yet
another opportunity for Pagosa residents to enjoy something new and
different - and support the arts in our area at the same time.
Tickets are available at Loredana's on Bastille and at Hodge Podge in
the River Center. Doors open at 6:30 p.m. for dinner/performance.

Our next two members join us as Real Estate Associates, and I
am particularly happy with this since this has been one of my recent
bandwagons. I think it makes such good sense for Realtors to join as
Real Estate Associates since it gives them a personal presence on the
Chamber Website, mailings to relocation requests and the membership
directory. Obviously competition is fierce in the Real Estate milieu
in Pagosa, and Associate Membership gives the Realtor a distinct
edge.

Welcome to Al Baird with Coldwell Banker, The Pagosa Group,
located at 2383 Highway 160. Al encourages you to put the
professionals to work for you in the areas of residential, commercial
or vacant land - they have it all. Visit them on their Website:
realestateinpagosa.com. or give them a call at 731-2000.

Yvonne Kuri also joins us with Coldwell Banker, The Pagosa
Group, at the same location. Yvonne sells Archuleta County whether
it's a home, land or commercial property you're interested in. She
offers you twenty-five years of experience in the Real Estate field
and invites you to give her a call at 731-2000 to learn more about
her services.

We're very excited about this year's addition to our holiday
celebration in Pagosa, the first Parade of Lights to take place
(weather permitting) on Friday evening, Dec. 10, at 6 p.m. We feel
that Pagosa has come of age to host this parade as an annual event
and presents yet another reason for our visitors from near and far to
make sure they are here for this weekend. Invitations to all members
will be in the mail soon to give you all the details, but we hope
that you and your family/business/organization and/or neighbors will
get together to join us in this premier event. Cash prizes (100 Big
Ones) will be awarded in five categories: Best and Brightest in
Business/Organization/Family/Lodging/and Real Estate. Santa Claus
will appear on the Chamber of Commerce float, by the way, so it's
sure to be a child-pleaser. Look for your invitation in the mail and
begin thinking up clever ideas for your entry. Of course, we will
celebrate Christmas in Pagosa as we always do on the first Saturday
of Dec. 4, with Santa at the Chamber, Christmas cookies, spiced
cider, caroling by our Mountain Harmony ladies and the annual
Lighting Ceremony performed by Santa himself. Watch the SUN for more
information about both of these holiday celebrations.

Christmas cards

Just a reminder that the Pagosa Springs Christmas cards are
available at the Visitor Center as long as they last. It still seems
early, I know, but there are only about two and a half weeks left in
November, and the month of December will descend upon us like a
freight train. (Not exactly a great holiday simile, but you get the
meaning, I'm sure.) Stop by and pick up a box of these beautiful
jewels so you won't have to think about that particular piece of the
holidays anymore.

Newsletter inserts

Please get movin' on those newsletter inserts as quickly as
possible and get them to us at the Visitor Center. We set a deadline
of Nov. 26, but because of the Thanksgiving holiday on Nov. 25 and
the possibility of us closing the Visitor Center on that Friday, we
would like to see them by Nov. 24. The December newsletter is always
a popular choice for inserts because of the holidays, so I would
encourage you to be an early bird with your 700 flyers and check for
$30. We had to go to $30 because the number of inserts has gone
through the ceiling. Give Morna a call with any questions at
264-2360

Kiosk

In our never-ending attempt to be on the cutting edge (no,
really, I'm serious), your Chamber of Commerce has contracted with
Signature Multimedia, a company specializing in interactive touch
screen kiosks and displays, to have our very own kiosk at the Visitor
Center. If you are not familiar with this concept, picture an ATM -
but instead of receiving money, you receive information. Yep,
information at your fingertips. The user would press a button to
access information in a category to view sponsors. The button next to
your company's name would allow the user to see a full-page ad with
your company's logo, photos and information. Then they can press the
CALL button under your ad, which would directly connect them with
your company or directions to your location along with them. The
program also includes a MAP button, highlighting the location of your
company. Additionally, when the touch screen is not in use, your ad
would be displayed as a screen-saver for approximately 30 seconds, up
to 30 times a day. This represents just another marketing/advertising
opportunity for you and your business. My vision is that this will
certainly not replace our Diplomats during regular business hours,
but will be an invaluable aid to visitors arriving after hours who
will be looking for lodging, restaurants and just all services in
general.

The representatives from Signature Multimedia will be
contacting you sometime in the near future to see if you would be
interested in participating in the kiosk program, and, obviously,
there is no obligation to take part if you feel this is not the right
avenue for you and your business. The fee for one year is $499, and
you can call Rhea at 888-545-9853 for answers to any questions you
might have. We at the Chamber see this as just another option for our
membership to get their names out there by hook or by crook. It also
serves to make our community more "user/visitor friendly" and that
helps all of us.

Thanksgiving openings

If you are a lodging or restaurant member, please give us a
call and let us know your Thanksgiving status. We are receiving lots
and lots of phone calls from folks who want to come to Pagosa for the
holiday but are having trouble finding lodging and want to know where
they can go for a Thanksgiving feast. Please call Morna if you have
rooms open for that time period - and if you are a restaurant, please
let her know if you will be open on Thanksgiving day. You can reach
us at 264-2360.

Pagosa Lakes

By Ming Steen

Really, there's plenty to do in
Pagosa

When I first moved to Pagosa, a dear friend from San Francisco
came to visit. After a mere two days she proclaimed she felt like a
living dead from dearth of external stimuli. "Just how are you going
to entertain yourself in sleepy hollow?" she asked. In my 16 years in
Pagosa I have not once suffered from a want of reasons to get me
speedily out of bed each morning.

Let's take a look at this Saturday. In the morning, there is
the Turkey Trot to benefit the Ruby Sisson Library. The Trot consists
of a 5-kilometer walk to begin at 9 a.m. or a 10K run at 10 a.m. -
starting out from the parking lot of the Pagosa Lakes Recreation
Center. After the Turkey Trot, attend Immaculate Heart of Mary
Catholic Church's annual luncheon and fashion show at noon. The event
will be held in the Parish Hall. For the evening, let Debbee Ramey
entertain you at the Pagosa Lakes Community Center. Debbee will be
joined by other musicians at the Whistle Pig Folk Night, part of a
series of monthly concerts sponsored by Pagosa Springs Arts Council.
It doesn't get any better - Saturday offeres a fine balance of
athletics, good food, fashion and local musical talent.

Robert F. Kennedy Jr. will speak at Fort Lewis Concert Hall on
Tuesday, Nov. 16, at 7:30 p.m. He will be addressing environmental
issues. Tickets are required for this. Call the box office at
247-7657 for tickets.

Another master swim clinic will be conducted on Thursday, Nov.
18, at the Pagosa Lakes Recreation Center from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m.
Natalie Koch, coach of the Pagosa Lakes Swim Club, will be teaching
the clinic. Please call the recreation center for additional
information.

Party for Powder, a benefit fundraiser for the Pagosa Springs
Community Center, will be held this Saturday night at 7 at the
"Victorian" next to Jackisch Drug. What is this party for powder?
Besides being a gathering of people yearning for powder, it will be
an opportunity to view two new ski and snowboard films. In addition
to watching some phenomenal action, you will be donating towards the
fund for the Community Center through a $5 movie fee. A number of
local businesses have also donated door prizes of skis, snowboard,
hot spring passes, videos and lift tickets. As an additional bonus,
you'll have the chance to register to win a week of heli-skiing in
New Zealand with round trip airfare for two. Tickets are available at
Summit Ski and Sport, Pagosa Springs Town Hall and Wolf Tracks
Bookstore.

The PLPOA monthly board meeting will be held tonight at 7 in
the Pagosa Lakes Community Center. Members and observers are
encouraged to attend. Public comments are heard at the beginning of
the meeting.

The following agenda for tonight's meeting was provided by the
Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association: - Call to order

In 1999, we are witnessing a time of unparalleled activity to
get more children on the road to reading.

An unprecedented pro-literacy movement, focused on children
under age 9, is sweeping through thousands of communities across the
nation. A common strategy has emerged for reading success: we must
start early by preparing young children to read, and we must finish
strong by providing excellent instruction and community support in
the primary grades.

In 1998, The National Research Council produced "Preventing
Reading Difficulties in Young Children," a blueprint for action to
create a nation of readers. The study clearly defines the key
elements all children need in order to become good readers.
Specifically, kids need to learn letters and sounds and how to read
for meaning. They also need opportunities to practice reading with
many types of books. While some children need more intensive and
systematic individualized instruction than others, all children need
these three essential elements in order to read well and
independently by the end of third grade. Effective teaching and extra
resources can make it possible for many "at-risk" children to become
successful leaders.

Newspapers, businesses, libraries, sports teams, community
service groups, employees, college students, and volunteers of all
ages are stepping forward to tutor children, work with parents,
provide books, and support schools. This crusade is reshaping our
view of the reading challenge. Every parent, caregiver, teacher, and
citizen has a role to play to spark dramatic improvement in reading.
Explore ways that you or your organization can support this
effort.

What can be done to prepare more children for reading success?

First, families can maximize the benefits of parent-child
communication from birth.

Second, caregivers and preschool teachers can be trained and
given resources to stimulate emergent literacy.

Third, children deserve well-trained teachers who understand
reading development, who can pinpoint problems, and who can address
them effectively.

In addition, entire communities can rally around their children
for literacy success. This means more partnerships between schools
and communities. It means greater engagement of private enterprise
and cultural groups. It means more volunteers and more opportunities
for legions of mentors and tutors.

By expanding our view of who contributes to students' reading
success, we are increasing opportunities for millions of Americans to
endow our children with this lifelong skill. If we succeed in
engaging this untapped pool of adults, the results will
revolutionized education in this country.

The Education Center is working with the schools to coordinate
the participation of tutors in after-school programs. Many of the
current tutors are local high school teens who are doing an
outstanding job of working with younger students. There is a pressing
need to involve more community adults as volunteers to support this
program.

Please contact the Education Center at 264-2835 to see how you
can help during the after-school hours or contact the schools if you
would like to help during regular school hours.

Library News

by Lenore Bright

'Yes' vote provides 'adequate
funding'

Cloud nine

What a week it has been. We are still enjoying our state of
euphoria.

Voters gave us a clear mandate, and we can now plan well for
the future.

Finally, after 107 years, the library will have adequate
funding. Civic Club members started the Library all those years ago.
And the Civic Club members today are awesome. They made over $5,000
at their bazaar. Proceeds help the library and support other
community projects. Congratulations to this dedicated group of
ladies.

A pair of glasses in a brown case and a silver ring were found
at the bazaar. If you're missing one of these, come by the library
and pick it up.

Thank you

So many people deserve thanks for work at the Bazaar, I know I
will forget someone if I try to list them all here. We'll try to get
them all privately. But Truett Forrest and his Promise Keepers,
Circle-T Lumber, and Ralph Gibson deserve special recognition. Ralph
made the new partitions, Circle-T helped, and the Promise Keepers set
them up and took them down - what a job!

We thank all of you who had a part in this 25th annual event.
To all of you who made the lovely raffle items, and Margaret Wilson -
you've outdone yourself! This was the most successful raffle ever.
(And Margaret wanted me to thank all of you who bought raffle tickets
- you made the difference.)

More thanks

We're still savoring our election. Thanks to the Friends and
the Civic Club for forming the "Library Yes" Committee. Dick Hillyer
and Scotty Gibson co-chaired the committee that worked so hard to win
our ballot issue. We thank all of you who donated to the campaign. We
won't let you down.

Turkey Trot

One more event to go in this exciting season. Join the walkers
and runners Saturday for the sixth annual event. Our own marathon
will be fun with prizes and goodies. You have two more days to sign
up.

The Library will be closed for the Turkey Trot, so come on out
and join us.

Local author

Julie Gates, one of our outstanding teachers, has another book
published. "Consider the Earth: Environmental Activities for grades 4
to 8, Second Edition" is now in print. While it is mainly for
teachers, it is a good reference work for parents, grandparents, home
schoolers, and the general public interested in environmental
activities. Congratulations to Julie for this well-reviewed work.

Christmas beckons the artists and artistic lovers of Pagosa as
it nears the time of the "Olde Tyme Christmas Shoppe" at the Pagosa
Springs Arts Council Gallery.

Visitors are in for a treat of beautiful handmade items with a
cheery theme from local artists. There is bound to be something for
everyone - even those difficult individuals to shop for. The
Christmas Shoppe will be open from Dec. 2 through Dec. 23 during the
regular winter hours, Tuesday through Saturday, 11 a.m. to 3:30
p.m.

Artists, there is still a little time left to submit your
Christmas creations, so don't delay. Please call Joanne at 264-5020
as soon as possible to be a part of this annual celebration of
Christmas bliss. The pieces will be accepted at the gallery in Town
Park on Sunday, Nov. 30, between 11 a.m. and 3:30 p.m.

Also, a reminder that the Arts Center/Gallery and Gift Shoppe
is closed during the month of November. The Gallery will reopen with
an open house reception from 5 to 7 p.m. on Dec. 2, at an "Olde Tyme
Christmas Shoppe," in the town park.

Card workshop

Time is of the essence on this upcoming activity. There's only
a couple days left to enter the PSAC watercolor Christmas card
workshop instructed by Mary Cardin at the gallery in the town park.
The final class will be held on Nov. 13. The workshop will be from 9
a.m. until 5 p.m. with participants bringing a brown bag lunch. The
cost is $35 and the list of materials each person must bring will be
given out at registration.

Hurry and call the PSAC gallery at 264-5020 and leave your name
and number to register, immediately! Registration is by payment of
the fee and on a first-come basis. Only 12 people will be able to
participate in the class.

Whistle Pig

Prepare your ears for an audible treat! The next Whistle Pig
open mike night is Nov. 13 and features a very talented group of
musicians including Debbee Ramey (Tucker). Song writer and musician
Debbee has been living and making music in Pagosa Springs and the
Southwest for nearly 18 years. She recently journeyed to California
to work on a CD recording. Debbee will be accompanied by Robbie
Pepper and other friends. That's not all either! All musicians,
poets, and storytellers are encouraged to come out and express
themselves. Whistle Pig takes place at the Pagosa Lakes Clubhouse,
230 Port Avenue, and begins at 7 p.m. Donations are $4 for adults;
kids and teens come along free. Also, on Dec. 11, Whistle Pig will
host a Christmas dance with music by John Graves.

Y2K events

Great news for those preparing ahead for the year 2000 exhibit
season. Applications for exhibiting work at the Arts Center/Gallery
are available and may be picked up at the Moonlight Books during the
month of November. That means now!

Another thing to keep in mind is the annual PSAC photography
contest will be here before you know it. Time to dig out that camera
and get a head start. The entry deadline is Feb. 2. All photographs
will be displayed at Moonlight Books Feb. 5 through Feb. 26. For more
information, contact Phyl Daleske at 731-4589.

Help wanted

The PSAC is searching for a person with computer access (and
skills to match) to maintain the membership roster and keep it up to
date. PSAC also needs someone, again with a computer, to help prepare
its quarterly newsletter, "The Petroglyph." If you're interested,
please leave your name and phone number at 264-5020.

Thanks

Thanks so much to the folks at the Spring Inn and the Pagosa
Lodge for their assistance, donating rooms to the Creede performers.
Both establishments are well appreciated for their hospitality.

Senior News

By Janet Copeland

Seniors celebrate Halloween with songs,
parade

Thanks to our wonderful staff and cooks at the Senior Center,
we celebrated Halloween and the October birthdays on Friday with much
fanfare and beautiful decorations - everyone had a great time. Carlo
Carrannante sang some "songs from the past" that most of us
recognize. We appreciate his sharing his exceptional voice with us.
The second graders from Kate Lister's class visited us again,
bringing paper pumpkins and cards they had drawn for their "adopted
grandparents" - they are a wonderful group of children and we enjoy
them so much. The students, and many of the seniors, were dressed in
Halloween costumes and provided a Halloween parade - what fun!

Winners of the Seniors Costume Contest were Eva Darmopray, Kurt
Killion, Bruce Muirhead and Lena Bowden. They really went all out in
coming up with original and cute costumes, as did several other
folks. Thanks everyone for participating and making it such a fun
occasion.

Our Seniors Choice Meal will be served at noon on Monday, Nov.
8. Everyone should come out and enjoy this wonderful lunch prepared
especially per our requests. Thanks so much to Dawnie and the kitchen
crew for allowing us this choice.

An anonymous donor has offered to give away a very good wood
stove. If you are interested, call Cindy at 264-2167.

Congratulations to our Senior of the Week, Dorothy O'Harra.

Our most welcome guests this week include Fidel Perea, Jane
Martinez, S. Beaught, Douglas Howard, Juanita Gallegos, Juanita
Archuleta, Fannie Romero, Carol Pacheco, and Jay Myers. It was good
to see members Ray and Lila Martinez and Willie Trujillo eating with
us on Friday. We hope all of you folks will come back to eat with us
again soon.

Some of the high school students have volunteered to help our
shut-ins. If you are a shut-in and need help with light housekeeping,
reading, or just want someone to visit or play games with, contact
Cindy at 264-2167 and she will make the arrangements.

The Senior Center will be closed on Nov. 25 and Nov. 26 for
Thanksgiving.

Editorials

The voters in Archuleta County have
demonstrated a willingness to trust their elected officials with
excess revenues so long as it does not involve increasing tax rates
beyond the limitations imposed by the TABOR Amendment.

The results of Tuesday's county-wide
election indicate that most voters are aware that municipal entities
cannot maintain existing services and infrastructures nor provide
improvements without being allowed to use excess revenues that result
from an increase in population, part-time residents and
tourists.

It's unrealistic to think a county or
district can properly address growth-related demands without being
trusted to retain and use growth-related excess revenues. Last week's
county commissioners meeting offered an illustration.

Whereas the supposed number of county
employees living below the poverty level dropped from 27 to 11 during
the day's public and closed discussion, it still is understandable
the commissioners are interested in continuing to increase the
salaries of the county employees who are under their direction. I am
sure the county's other elected officials want to do the same with
the various employees within their departments. Even after
discussions at this week's commissioners meeting revealed that there
are zero full-time employees receiving wages below the poverty level,
salaries should remain a valid concern with all of the elected
officials.

Salaries and benefits have been and
probably always will be a point of contention in the county
courthouse, town hall and school district. Still, it is a rare
incident if there is only one applicant for any of the full-time job
openings that are advertised by the county, town or schools. This is
understandable. Besides offering a salary, employment with the
municipal sector offers medical and dental benefits as well as 11 or
so paid holidays a year and at least two weeks of paid vacation.
Also, county employees are offered free memberships with a local
fitness center.

As with the job openings themselves, all
other services or positions such as county attorney, fuel, road
materials, office supplies, janitorial services, printing, and heavy
equipment have always been advertised and awarded to the most
qualified applicant or lowest bidder. State bids are used on vehicle
purchases. As for construction projects, state statutes require that
all projects over $50,000 be advertised and put out for
bids.

Reading between the lines of the recent
discussions among the county commissioners, there is more than just a
concern about salaries; there is a concern about the management of
the county.

Again, this is not the first time for
such a concern to arise. In the past, it was discussed in private
among certain commissioners, probably more so than in public, and
eventually in public at their regular meetings. The discussions lead
to changes. However, within a few months the changes were changed and
the management of the county returned to its former
status.

Changes should not surprise anyone in
public service. In a real sense, they are growth-related matters.
Whether they are related to the growing demands for improved services
within the county or related to the growing cycle of its leadership,
they are good for the county. Especially when the discussions are
conducted during public meetings so that everyone can be "in the
loop."

David C. Mitchell

Dear Folks

By David C. Mitchell

Checking up on La Nina, El
Sol

Dear Folks,

For years, other than in Spanish I classes, "La Niña"
never entered our conversations. But now, "The Little Girl" is
visiting Pagosa every other year. She definitely is one winter
visitor the business folks in Pagosa Springs can do without.

This isn't the time of year for Forest Service officials to be
cautioning folks about using fires in the back country.

If this keeps up the Colorado Division of Wildlife folks will
have to reconsider releasing more lynx in this area later this
winter. It just wouldn't be fair to turn one of the transplanted
felines loose early next spring if the nearest snow is hundreds of
miles to the north.

The fascinating felines have made their way back into the
headlines recently. Unfortunately it was a good news-bad news
situation.

The other day it was reported that one of the 28 surviving
lynx, one of the 41 who had been released in the San Juan National
Forest last spring, has made its way more than 500 miles to
southwestern Nebraska. Another has been traced by its radio-collar to
the lower part of Navajo Reservoir in New Mexico. Of the remaining
survivors, most are still in Colorado.

A third lynx, one of the 13 who have been killed or died of
natural causes, was shoot near Cortez on October 31. The year-old
female had been released near Creede last May. It was killed by a
Louisiana deer hunter reportedly shot the lynx "while sitting on his
ATV, while parked on the road."

That adds up to charges of willful destruction of wildlife, a
felony, killing a state-endangered species, shooting from a road, and
having a loaded weapon on a vehicle. A conviction on all counts could
result in $110,000 in fines, up to seven years in jail and a lifetime
prohibition from hunting.

Evidently the Division of Wildlife officials are undaunted by
the prospects of El Niño and a possible snowless winter as
they plan to release another 50 lynx next spring in the San Juan
Mountains.

I had planned on using the perennial snow banks on the north
side of the house for my Y2K water source and food freezer in
January. But now I have to add La Niña to my "What If?" list
for the new year.

A short news item in yesterday's Denver daily reminded me to
keep a spot open for "El Sol" on my end-of-the year preparedness
list.

Yes, the sun plans to be in a bad mood when it greets the year
2000. It will be erupting into the most active part of the sun's
11-year cycle with outbursts of energy that can threaten
communication satellites and electrical power.

Though they don't receive as much attention as the Y2K
prognosticators, officials at the National Oceanic and Atmospheric
Administration are saying that the approaching solar storm could be
more destructive than previous cycles because the Earth now has more
power grids and satellites that might be affected. The intensity of
the solar storms are expected to cause three types of energy
eruptions: geomagnetic, radiation and radio storms.

So San Juan National Forest officials aren't the only folks who
are concerned about problems flaring up.

Know you are loved and please keep us in your prayers.

David

25 years ago

Spanish Club at state festival

Taken from SUN files

of Nov. 21, 1974

A new type of enterprise for this area is now in operation just
east of town. It is the Shive Springs Trout Ranch where trout are to
be hatched and sold commercially to owners of lakes and ponds in this
area. Many year's ago Born's Lake was operated as a commercial fish
hatchery but this area has been without one for a long time.

A group of searchers from South Dakota is in the Blanco Basin
area this week looking for a plane that has been missing for almost a
month. The plane, carrying two men and three bodies was en route to
South Dakota from Gallup, N.M., when it disappeared.

High school Principal Ron Shaw was presented with the keys to a
new 1975 Chevrolet last by Ben Johnson, owner of Johnson Chevrolet.
The vehicle is to be used by the school for its driver's training
program. There is no charge to the school for the car, with its use
being donated by Johnson Chevrolet.

A very lively comedy is in the offering as the Pagosa Springs
High School Drama Club presents its fall play, "Off the Track,"
tomorrow night and Saturday in the high school gym. Under the
direction of Will Hobbs, the cast includes Tammy Powell, Paulette
Shoemaker, Debby Cole, Julie Peters, Robert Martinez, Janet Walter,
Laurie Corbin, Dawn Walker and Laurie Ebeling.

Legacies

By Shari Pierce

Bridge work excruciatingly slow

Pagosa's temporary bridge across the San Juan River in town had
washed out in 1957, following a very snowy winter and after several
years of service. Town officials began meeting with state
representatives, searching for help to replace the bridge. It was
determined that the old bridge which had crossed the Piedra River and
U.S. 160 was available. This seemed the best bet to quickly remedy
Pagosa's situation. Even this option would cause the town to be
without a bridge for a couple of months.

It was an inconvenience for those needing to cross the river.
It was a 7-mile trip around from one side to the other. And the road
traveled was not in good condition due to the high waters caused by
the run off. County crews were put to work grading and graveling to
get the road in shape to be used. A temporary footbridge was
constructed across the San Juan River.

At their August meeting, the county commissioners committed men
and equipment to help in the construction of bridge approaches.

In September, The Pagosa Springs SUN announced that the state
highway department would supervise the construction of the bridge and
supporting piers. It was thought the bridge could be up by late fall
or early winter. That was not to be.

It was later decided that the bridge should rest on steel
piling driven into the ground. The town also had problems getting
bids from companies to move the bridge. Only two bids had been
received, $21,000 and $30,000. These were both beyond what the town
could afford. It was then decided the state highway department would
move the bridge and charge the town the amount the town had set aside
for the project, approximately $10,000. These decisions were not made
until early December.

Finally, on Dec. 19, the SUN reported that work had actually
begun on preparing the location for the bridge. Pilings needed to be
driven and the river bank leveled to allow safer working conditions
for the equipment working on the bridge.

Work on the bridge was excruciatingly slow and in mid-January
the town board met to discuss the project at length. It was decided
that something had to be done to move the project ahead. If the
bridge was to be in place before the spring runoff and in time to do
any good the next summer, work would have to be done by the town. One
of the board members resigned and "took on the job of building the
bridge."

More next week.

Features

Video Review

By Roy Starling

'Matrix' film a near myth

Unless you've seen "Alice in Wonderland," "Alien," "Empire
Strikes Back," "Enter the Dragon," "The Greatest Story Ever Told,"
"Invasion of the Body Snatchers," "Karate Kid," "Kentucky Fried
Movie," "The Truman Show," or almost any town-tamer Western, you've
never seen a film like "The Matrix" (1999).

Yes, "The Matrix" is a daring and original movie, loaded up
with mythic and religious allusions and symbolism, and indebted to
scenes, themes and plot lines from a whole array of earlier
movies.

The film focuses on a character known variously as Thomas and
Neo (Keanu Reeves), who, like most of us, senses that there's
something wrong, artificial, unreal about the world he lives in. The
"life" he sees going on around him is a sham, a mockery, a sham of a
mockery of a sham.

The movie soon alerts us that something lies beneath all its
appearances, objects and names, that, in short, it's kind of an
allegory, so we go to work trying to figure out the significance of
the character's names. This is a good thing: It keeps the brain busy
during some of the needlessly long fight (and fight rehearsal)
scenes.

The Reeves character is Thomas in that, like the Thomas of
Christian stories, he begins by doubting - first, the world he lives
in and, second, his alleged role in transforming and liberating it.
He is Neo because he is new and can lead the way to, I guess, a new
heaven and a new earth.

Neo is also an anagram of "one," and he is believed to be The
One other members of the resistance are looking for, The One that
comes along only once in an eon.

Neo learns of his calling by telephone calls (telephones,
incidentally, take care of all the serious business in this movie,
just as cell phones do for big-city folks all across this great
nation of ours) from a mysterious Morpheus.

Morpheus turns out to be Laurence Fishburne (who was nothing
more than a skinny little dude back when he was in "Apocalypse Now"),
a kind of John the Baptizer character, preparing the way for The One.
Morpheus is named after a being, seen in the works of Ovid, who
causes dreams in which human beings appear. Once you've seen this
film, you'll see how appropriate that name is.

In addition to trafficking in the dream trade, Morpheus also
serves as Yoda to Neo, teaching him, in a sense, to tap into the
Force, to overcome matter with mind, to learn some serious
hot-diggity-dog kung fu moves.

With Morpheus' help, Neo swallows a red pill, follows the White
Rabbit down its hole, and suddenly he isn't in Kansas anymore. His
journey begins, actually, when he is swallowed up by a mirror (long
believed by primitive minds to be the gateway to an alternative
reality), then he is submerged in water (get it?), and then he pops
up in the post-apocalyptic real world.

Neo learns that what he thought was the real world was in fact
The Matrix, "a neural interactive simulation, computer-generated
dream world, . . . the world that's been pulled over our eyes to
blind us from the Truth."

So in what appeared to be real life, human beings were being
controlled by machines who needed them for their energy. So how is
that different from the world we live in now?

In case you're wondering, a matrix, according to Mr. Webster,
is something, as a surrounding or pervading substance or element,
within which something else originates or takes form or shape - a
kind of womb, in other words. In fact, matrix is derived from the
Latin word "mater" (mother).

Anyway, in "The Matrix," out of The Matrix there exists one
last human city, known as Zion, a term often used to refer to the
birthplace of Judeo-Christianity. Other folks use it as a synonym for
"the Jewish people" or the City of God or Utopia.

Since this is a very conventional Hollywood movie (aside from
its thought-provoking allusions), there can be only one way for The
One to usher in a peaceful, harmonious new heaven and new earth where
the lion can lie down with the lamb: He must arm himself to the
teeth, along with his trusty female sidekick Trinity, and blow the
brains out of those sinister suit-wearing sentinels of cyberspace. It
all comes down to who has the most guns and who can dodge bullets the
fastest.

The finale is a regular gunfight at the O.K. Corral, and you
can relax and enjoy all the fireworks knowing that most of the beings
getting blown to bits aren't really human. Of course, this is what we
tell ourselves during wartime, but that's another story.

Very few people in my business would write a review of a Keanu
Reeves film without heaping derision on the poor boy's acting
ability, but - at the risk of losing my film-reviewer's union card -
I'm going to pass on that cheap pleasure. Movies like "The Matrix"
require no acting, and Reeves did very well with not acting.

There is disagreement among moviegoers over whether "The
Matrix" is a clever, intellectually and emotionally engaging work of
high-tech wizardry or just a pretentious pile of poppycock, a heaping
helping of humbug, a babbling batch of balderdash, a clumsy collage
of claptrap.

Although this movie wasn't my cup of black coffee, I shouldn't
be too hard on it. Any movie that invites us to challenge the dreary,
machine-like, monotonous, lifeless way most of us get through life
can't be all bad. Whatever it takes to remind us that we're not dead
yet.

Which reminds me

For another week, at a theater very near you, you can see the
beautifully made creepfest, "The Sixth Sense," starring Bruce Willis
and a tremendously gifted child actor named Haley Joel Osment. This
movie is scary, brainy, sophisticated. See it with someone whose lap
you won't mind winding up in.

Oldtimers

By John M. Motter

What happened to earliest
buildings?

Who erected the first buildings in Pagosa
Springs? The answer to that question may be lost forever. Welch
Nossaman claimed to build the first cabin in 1876. The Southern Utes
burned Nossaman's first civilization efforts.

We know that the first Pagosa Springs
post office opened its doors June 5, 1878. We know that first post
office was located about one mile south of the Great Pagosa Hot
Springs on a freight road connecting Tierra Amarilla, N.M., with
Animas City and the Silverton mining districts. The post office
application claimed 100 residents would be served. Who were those
residents and where did they live?

On Oct. 18, of 1878, 22 enlisted men
belonging to Company I of the 15th Infantry and commanded by 2nd
Lieutenant Alexis R. Paxton marched into Pagosa Springs. The record
doesn't tell us if they marched, road horseback, or rode wagons.
Because Paxton's troops began building living quarters immediately,
it is safe to assume they brought wagon loads of supplies and tools
with them. It wouldn't be surprising if they rode on the wagons as
well.

In those days it was customary to assign
troops with building skills to an assignment such as Pagosa Springs,
where the task was to erect a fort. Paxton's orders called for him to
pick the most suitable site and erect temporary quarters as soon as
possible.

He accomplished a great deal in a short
time, to the dismay of Capt. W.T. Hartz, who took command Oct. 28. In
an Oct. 30, letter, Hartz wrote, "I find that Lt. Paxton has a large
hackel (jacal) or stockade building for dirt roof 110 x 18 feet in
the clear two thirds completed, also a building 20 x 30 for his own
use, as they are so nearly finished I will allow him to complete and
occupy them. His company will then be comfortably housed and the
other work can then go on without interruption."

Hartz noted that a bench on the west side
of the San Juan River would be a better building site than the site
chosen by Paxton on the east side of the river. Ultimately, the fort
was built on the west side on a location now housing downtown Pagosa
Springs.

Our question is, what happened to those
two buildings erected by Paxton? They were probably occupied by
troops that first winter, but after that, the troops would have moved
across the river to the main fort.

Winter came with a vengeance that first
winter. The black troops who made up Company D, Ninth Cavalry,
pitched their tents along the river, probably in the vicinity of
today's county courthouse. Other troops and additional functions were
housed in tents. The thermometer dropped near a minus 40 degrees. The
snow was deep and supplies couldn't reach the partially completed
fort.

In December of 1878 Lt. McCauley,
assistant engineer, Dept. of the Missouri and assigned to the Third
Cavalry, visited the fledgling fort. He leaves us a description,
including maps. The maps showed what was planned for construction, as
opposed to what actually existed at that time. McCaulay's map shows
four buildings south of town at the post office location, along with
one building southeast of the Great Pagosa Hot Spring. Other
buildings are located in the general vicinity of what today is the
intersection of San Juan Street and Hot Springs Blvd. Because
Paxton's buildings are described as having a "northern exposure" we
suspect they were built in this vicinity where on the south they were
shaded by Reservoir Hill.

McCaulay's map shows a road branching
from Hot Springs Blvd. and running northwesterly south of the Great
Hot Spring eventually crossing the San Juan River a few feet east of
the confluence with McCabe Creek.

A photograph of the Great Pagosa Hot
Spring taken circa 1881 shows several buildings south of the Hot
Spring, buildings we can no longer identify.

President James A. Garfield, in 1877, set
aside one square mile surrounding the Great Pagosa Hot Springs as a
townsite. That action was meant to keep people from settling on that
square mile, but it didn't work. The Army tried to chase away
squatters, but that didn't work either.

By April of 1879, a Pagosa resident
reported, "There are 33 buildings at this place. Two mercantile
establishments - Major Peabody, the post trader and Indian trader
also, and Joe Clarke and Ed Laithe the other. There are four saloons
owned by Major Peabody, Ed Laithe, Thomas Blair, and Broad and Co.,
and one butcher shop owned by Stull (Stollsteimer?) and Capt. W.S.
Walker; one sawmill owned by Major Cooper of Animas City but
Superintendent by Thos. Graden.

"The conveniences for bathing at the
springs are rather poor, just now, there being no public bath
house.

" Mr. Dunn, of Animas City, met with
quite a misfortune on Monday last. He and his wife being out
visiting, their tent caught on fire and burned to ashes in about ten
minutes.

"The first burial at Pagosa Springs took
place the latter part of April. Jose M. Velarde of Tierra Amarilla
died. Cause of death was old age. Ed Laithe conducted the
services."

And so we read through a few reports of
the birth of the town of Pagosa Springs. While the reports provide
answers, they leave as many questions unanswered. One of those
questions remains. Who erected the first permanent
building?

Business News

November 11, 1999

Biz Beat

Isabel's

Yale Espoy is the owner of Isabel's,
located at 20 Village Drive, at the corner of Village Drive and North
Pagosa Boulevard.

The restaurant features eclectic American
food, served at reasonable prices in a casual atmosphere. A full
range of quality wines and spirits is available and great service is
a hallmark of the establishment.

Isabel's is open Tuesday through Saturday
for dinner only, from 5 to 9 p.m.

Reservations are recommended. Call
Isabel's at 731-5448.

Weather Stats

Date

High

Low

Precipitation

Type

Depth

Moisture

10/27

64

25

-

-

-

10/28

60

33

-

-

-

10/29

50

15

-

-

-

10/30

61

21

-

-

-

10/31

60

20

-

-

-

11/1

63

20

-

-

-

11/2

55

17

-

-

-

Note to snow lovers: Be
patient

By John M. Motter

Local folks waiting for the weather to change need a mountain
lake full of patience, according to Bob Jacobson, a National Weather
Service forecaster from Grand Junction.

"Your weather will remain dry and unseasonably warm for as long
into the future as we can see," Jacobson said.

A high pressure ridge centered on the Four Corners area is
controlling local weather conditions, according to Jacobson. The
ridge is strong enough to force the Arctic jet stream into a
northerly path across southern Canada before dropping into the Upper
Plains states and the eastern United States.

"Temperatures should range from the upper 50s to the mid-60s
during daylight," Jacobson said, "and down to the low 20s at
night."

High pressure forces a downward air movement which does not
allow the development or entrance of clouds, according to
Jacobson.

Pressure is normally measured in inches of mercury and is
created by the weight of air. When measured at sea level, a column of
air will push mercury in a vacuum to a height of 29.92 inches.
Because the column of air is shorter at higher elevations and weighs
less, the mercury displacement in inches decreases. Because Pagosa
Springs is at an elevation of a little over 7,000 feet above mean sea
level, a barometric reading at Pagosa Springs is likely to be between
24 and 25 inches.

"All pressure readings are relative and all are converted to
the same sea-level standard so valid comparisons can be made,"
Jacobson said. "A high pressure area is identified by placing
adjusted pressure readings across a broad area on a map. The area
containing the highest readings is the high pressure area."

Current weather trends in the Four Corners area are following a
La Niña pattern, according to Jacobson. That means warmer than
usual water in the western Pacific Ocean is creating warm air. The
warm air is responsible for the high pressure which, in turn, is
shunting water-laden air to the north of Pagosa Country.